Nakita Blocton (Image via Alabama Administrative Office of Courts)
The Alabama Court of the Judiciary removed Judge Nakita Blocton of Jefferson County, Alabama, from the bench. The court found she “engaged in a pattern of abuse of staff, attorneys and litigants” and communicated with litigants on social media using aliases.
According to the Judicial Inquiry Commission, some of the more egregious examples of the “abuse” include calling an employee a “heifer.” The commission also found Blocton also had a habit of making inappropriate comments, including calling a fellow judge a “fat b*tch” and another judge an “Uncle Tom.”
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As reported by ABA Journal, other issues the commission found with Blocton’s behavior include the following:
• Used several Facebook aliases to communicate with litigants in a pending domestic relations case in an effort to affect the outcome.
• Demanded employees’ work computer login information and ordered employees to show her their private cellphones, so any information related to the ethics investigation could be deleted.
• Failed to promptly dispose of many cases assigned to her, even though she spent a substantial amount of time at the office.
Blocton’s attorney, Emory Anthony, said she still may appeal the court’s decision and, “We were trying to keep her on the bench, and we were disappointed they removed her from the bench.”
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Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).